will be hunting 2nd season cow and am curious about cow calls. are they usefull while walking and calling? will i hear others call? 1st time elk hunting and wonder what the best thing to do is. spot and stalk? sit and wait hope for the best? we will be up around 9400 on up. just trying to get as much info as possible to make this a great hunt. i know that a bad day hunting beats a good day at work so no matter what, this is going to be a great trip. thanks

i was wondering the same thing. A friend let me borrow his Primos hoochie mamma for my trip next week. He said to use it while walking to both call and mask your movements?? I've never been either so Im wondering if this is factual

Using a call to mask yourself can work, but in the unit I hunt I would not touch a call during 2nd season. The elk have been called and pressured to death already from the 3 seasons before. On another note, if you push the button on the Hoochie Mama in my unit that elk will be gone, everybody and there dog have used the Hoochie Mama and you can tell when one is used. Just my .02 !

the best reason to have a cow call during rifle season is if you jump or spook a bull you can usually cow call real quick and more times than not it will stop for a second or three which should give you enough time for a shot.

I can tell you that not too many people call elk during rifle season unless the rut is late which I beleive it to ne this year, but I beleive by second season may be over except for maybe a few call coming in late. You can use you call to mask your sound or to stop and animal to give you a shot, but chances of using it to call an animal in is slim, but it never hurts to give it a try. Good luck on your hunt.

With the fellers on it not being effective by second season. You'll do more spooking and or educating if you're walking the ridges cow calling as you go. By that season you should rely on finding the elk. Get aways from other hunters and look for areas their traveling from food and water to bedding areas. You need to be out and into your areas early at first light and ambush or spot and stalk them.

If I may insert something into this thread, you guys are talking about using it to possibly mask your movements or sounds. However, I have heard on a few different shows, but not experienced it myself, that you can actually walk normally, even making some noise, especially in thicker cover. They claim that since elk are such large creature, they are not silent, so you do not have to be.

Or maybe that's when combined with calls during the rut to make them think you're an elk too. I'm not sure. Anyone know about that??

If I may insert something into this thread, you guys are talking about using it to possibly mask your movements or sounds. However, I have heard on a few different shows, but not experienced it myself, that you can actually walk normally, even making some noise, especially in thicker cover. They claim that since elk are such large creature, they are not silent, so you do not have to be.

Or maybe that's when combined with calls during the rut to make them think you're an elk too. I'm not sure. Anyone know about that??

Well, CA, it all depends (as you noted) on the time frame and situation. During the rut when you are calling one in and he is coming to your call and the wind is in your favor, then yes, the bull will associated any noises in addition to ones calls to be the cow or bull he is coming into. But, the elk will constantly be attempting to confirm with his other senses, scent, sight, what it is for sure. The fact that his hormones are urging him foreward will make him believe what he wants to believe at this time.

Now, lets move forward into second elk season, Like others have said they've been shot at by bow or gun and delt with humans for three seasons already. The rut is pretty much non existant by this point taking away our ace in the hole regarding their normal wariness. I personally wouldn't tack towards making any movement noise and hoping or thinking the elk are going to think I'm another elk in woods. They are on ultra hight alert unless in they've been living in an area unmolested for the last month. When on high alert any noises will put them on ultra, ultra, high, let's sneek the hell outta hear alert unless they can immediately confirm with all their other senses it is indeed other elk.

By second season I'm going to try and be even more silent, sneaky, and stealth, then I am in the early seasons. Like E. Fudd tip toeing after bugs one should be very, very, quiet hunting into the wind only their hunting elk not wabbits.

I carry a cow call, but there is no way that I expect to attract anything or entice an elk to come toward me. To add to what has been said by others already, you are usually only blowing a mew or chirp trying to buy a few more seconds of time.

If you see elk walking they are moving much faster than you would think. They can walk faster than a man can run without even shifting gears to their next gait, a trot. A call might give you a moment to hit the ground and set up for a shot. All you can really expect is to get them to pause long enough to look back.

The other situation is the thing where you are in an area of good habitat, you have been moving a few hundred yards silently, and then you blow it. You bust a branch or somehow make a noise. Give a quick mew. If there are elk nearby they won't put their heads down and go back to grazing (you won't be that lucky), but they might delay for a few more seconds before they disappear.

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